DEVELOPING

EMPLOYABILITY
SKILLS

September 2023

Internal
 My Profile
Management Consultant with Seventeen (17yrs) experience. Her
experience spans across Financial services, Management Education
and Consulting. She is currently the HR Process Consultant for IHS
Towers. She is also the Managing Consultant for PeoplePlus
Consulting Limited; an indigenous Human Resources and Strategy
Consulting firm. Prior to this, she was a Manager in the People and
Organisation Advisory practice of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
Nigeria for about four (4) years. Before joining PwC, she had hands
on HR experience as an Assistant Manager in the HR department of
Lagos Business School where she served for almost nine (9) years.
She sits on the Board of St. Saviour's School, Ebute-Meta and
ENIPRO Training Academy. She also serves as a Mentor with
Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ),
Lagos Business School (LBS) and Teach for Nigeria (TFN).
Tinuke is a Certified Management Trainer (NCMD), Member of the
Chartered Institute for Personnel Management (CIPM), Society for
Human Resources Management(SHRM) and Association for
MBAs( AMBA).
She holds a Bachelors degree in Agricultural Economics from
Federal University of
Technology, Akure (FUTA) and an Executive MBA from the
prestigious Lagos Business
Let's Talk.........

What are
your
expectations
from today's
session?
Session Objectives

Understand What Employability

Worksh
Skills op
are Approa3
ch
How to Prepare for an
Interview

Plan your Career

What is ‘Employability skills are a set of
social behaviours and skills that
Employability? you can learn to help you
interact and work with other
people in a variety of different
situations’ (Hind and Moss
2007:2)

‘A set of achievements – skills,

understanding and personal
attributes – that make graduates
more likely to gain employment
and be successful in their chosen
occupations' (Yorke, 2006)
 What Skills do Employers Look for in a
Graduate? ‘Many recruiters commented that
irrespective of the academic
results that a graduate had
achieved, it would be very hard
for an applicant to demonstrate
the skills and competencies that
they were looking for if they’d not
had any work experience.’

High Fliers Research (2011)

“Over three quarters (78 per cent) of the firms who responded to the
confederation of British Industry’s 2009 Education and Skills Survey said
Employability skills was one of the most important factors when recruiting
graduates, along with a Positive attitude (72 per cent) and relevant work
experience/industry placement (54 per cent)”
Universal Employability Skills
The World Economic Forum has identified top skills that will be
relevant over the next 5 years. They are transferrable skills
that cut across every discipline and are relevant at any level of
Technical (hard) Behavioural (soft)
your career.
skills skills
• 0
• Emotional
Intelligence
• Critical thinking and
• Project Management
analysis
• Data Analytics • Active learning
• Creativity and
• Business Intelligence
initiative
• Business Analysis • Attention to details
• Reasoning, problem-
• Digital Marketing
solving and ideation.
• Use of Technology • Leadership and social
influence.
• Coordination and
Time Management.
How to Build Employability Skills
 CV Writing- Understand what
employers are looking for. Let it
reflect in your CV. Sell yourself
 Set Career/Academic Goals -
Create a plan to achieve your goals
 Join a Professional Association –
Joining alone is not enough, you have
to be active
 Participate In Some Form of
Community Service - Dedicate your
time and energy toward improving
the community.
 How to Build Employability Skills
◦
Contd.
Internship- Look for opportunities to
learn and develop workplace skills
◦Training Sessions- Attend trainings in
line with your career goal. Free trainings
are available online
◦Mentorship– Get a role model. Someone
that has gone ahead of you that can
provide leadership and guidance
◦Develop a reading habit- Dedicate your
time and energy towards acquiring
knowledge. Read wide
What is a CV?

Curriculum Vitae is a Latin term

that means “course of life.”
• To inform the employer about
your education, work
experience, skills and
interests
• To ‘sell’ these qualities and to
persuade the employer to
invite you to interview
Some CV Errors to Avoid …..
• It is not ‘one size fits all’, you
need to tailor your CV to each
• positionspelling
Having you apply for. and
errors
bad grammar
• Exaggerating the truth
• Poor formatting
• An unoriginal personal profile
• Using an inappropriate email
address
• Not focusing on your
achievements
When Applying for jobs......
INTERVIEW
SKILLS
AND
TECHNIQU
ES
 Meaning of an
Interview
The word interview comes from Latin and
middle French words meaning to “see
between” or “see each other”.
Generally, an interview means a private
meeting between people where questions
are asked and answered
◦ Interview = A meeting with an objective
◦ Employer’s objective is to find the best
person for the job
◦ Employer: reviews candidate’s
experience and abilities for three(3) key
purposes:
◦ Can you do the job? (skills, abilities,
qualifications)
◦ Will you do the job? (interest,
attitude & motivation)
◦ How will you fit into the
organisation? (personality)
Objectives of Interview
2. Obtain
1. Verify the
additional
information
information from
obtained through
the applicant
application form
otherwise not
and tests.
available.
3. Provide the 4. Establish
candidate mutual
necessary facts understanding
and information between the
about the job and company and the
the organisation. candidate
In Preparing
for an Know
Interview ….. Yourself
◦ Why you need the job (goal) and
how it relates to the position and
the employer
◦ Qualifications and how it relates to
the position
◦ Work experience
◦ Abilities and skills

Always be able to give examples!

Know the
Employer
◦ Research! Research!
Research!
◦ Prepare to demonstrate
your knowledge of the
profession and the
company
◦ Prepare to give reasons for
your interest in working in
that profession/company
◦ Develop questions in
advance to ask about the
job/organization
Interview ◦ Situational
Knowledge
◦ Mental Preparation
◦ Knowledge of
Preparation ◦ Where/when the company
interview takes place ◦ Practice a mock
◦ Arrive 10 minutes interview
early!
◦ Written
◦ Physical Preparation Preparation
◦ Get plenty of rest ◦ Take extra resumes,
◦ Dress for success references, etc.
◦ Make notes
◦ Ask questions
 Preparation is the
key to success
◦ Review your skills, experiences and qualities
◦ Check CV
◦ Anticipate questions and identify relevant
examples
◦ Prepare key selling points
◦ Research organisation
◦ Websites, reports, articles, company literature,
etc
◦ Contacts with knowledge of organisation or
sector
◦ Relevant articles in the press
◦ Personal visit or telephone call
◦ Research job and occupational area
◦ Job description – or similar
◦ Current issues
◦ Prepare your questions
◦ Practice
 Ice Breakers
• Greetings
• First Impressions
5 Stages • Small talk

Interview
Qualifications and
Process Interest in Position
• Abilities, Skills, and Work
Experience
• Accomplishments and
Activities
• Goals
 Organization and
Position
• Employer may test your knowledge of the
company.
• “Why do you want to work for this company?”
• “What do you know about this department?”
Competency-based
Interviews
Interview • Teamwork: Describe a team project you worked
on. What problems arose? How did you deal with
them?

Process • Communication Skills: Describe situation when

you had to persuade others to support your view.
Give an example of any reports you’ve written
which illustrate your writing skills
• Interpersonal skills: What kinds of people do you
find it difficult to work with? How do you handle
those situations?
• Taking Responsibility: Describe a time when you
took responsibility to achieve a challenging goal
• Problem-solving: Tell about a time when you had
several tasks to manage at one time with
conflicting deadlines.
 Candidate Questions
• Your chance to ask questions
about job
• “What type of on the job training
do you provide?”
Interview • “What makes your company
different from its
Process Close and competitors?”
Follow-Up
• Find out who makes next move
• Thank the interview for their time
• Evaluate your performance
• Send a thank you note within 24
hours
Adopt the STAR Technique
in answering questions ….

◦Situation – describe the situation,

problem, or issue that you
encountered.
◦Task – describe the
tasks/responsibilities you took on to
help solve the problem.
◦Action – discuss the steps you actually
took to effect a solution.
◦Result – describe the positive results
of your actions.
 Tips for Successful Interviewing
◦ Interviewing is a two-way process
◦ Never give “yes” or “no” answers
◦ Listen carefully and react
◦ Use specific examples to make your
case
◦ The interview begins the minute you
step into the company lot
◦ Be positive!
TIPS FOR CAREER SUCCESS

 Be sure your career path

aligns with your passion

 Develop competencies in
line with the career path

 Set Career Goals

 Haven’t
Chosen a
Career?

• Find what interests

you/something you
are passionate about
• Look for volunteering
or interning
opportunities
• Research the skills
required
• Look for a mentor in
that field
Develop the Skills and
Capabilities
◦Join a professional body in line
with your career choice
◦Look for Volunteering or
internship opportunities
◦ Research online for materials
that educate you in line with
your career choice
◦Look for a mentor
Set Your Career Goal
◦A map that can show you a
way to reach your goals.
◦First, write a statement
describing your ultimate
career goal.
◦Example: I will be a Health
and Safety professional in
Lagos by the time I am 30
years old.
How Do I want to Achieve this
Goal?

◦Join a professional body

for HSE
◦Volunteer at any
organization
◦Research on organizations
that offer this type of
opportunity and materials
that educate you on HSE
◦Look for a mentor
Plans change over time ......

◦Goals and/or resources

can change so remain
flexible and be ready to
implement your plan
“B.”
Words on Marble……

“Academic study gets your foot in the door;

employability skills push it open to a far wider
range of opportunities. They make your
potential contribution to our business unique.
Consider these skills and experiences your
personal brand.”
Charles Macleod
Talent Leader, PwC UK LLP
Share Your Key Takeaways
Have your
expectations
been met?